What will become of PBS? The Public Broadcasting Service is cultural fixture that has been operating in the United States for 55 years. It is a commercial free service with more than 300 member stations and is known for iconic programs like Sesame Street, NOVA, Frontline, the PBS News Hour, Washington Week, and Mr. Rogers Neighbourhood to name a few. This rare platform for rare independent voices, and high quality documentaries is under fire.

It has been funded, at least in part, by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting but the Trump administration is cutting that funding to PBS and NPR, National Public Radio.

So what does that mean for those beloved programs and services? Veteran broadcast executive Ed Hersh tells us what PBS really is, how it works, and what these cuts mean not only for its survival, but for voices independent of corporate backing.